novelraw Chapter 211: Osiris and the Scales of the Dead
Chapter 211: Osiris and the Scales of the Dead
The High Priest's head slowly rose from its profound bow, and the heavy air of royal authority that had hung over the Karnak Temple for centuries dissipated with the movement.
"Please, follow me, honored Chosen One, and... your friends."
The High Priest's voice no longer carried the previous sense of distance. He spoke like an ordinary old man, issuing a genuine invitation to the group.
He turned and, with the golden scepter in his hand, lightly tapped three times on the base of one of the stone pillars in the Bubastis Colonnade, using a rhythm with a peculiar cadence.
The massive stone pillar, weighing hundreds of tons, slowly split down the middle, revealing a narrow crevice just wide enough for one person to pass through. It exposed a hidden secret passage leading deeper underground, constructed from a spiral staircase.
"This place was once used by successive pharaohs as a meditation chamber for bathing, changing clothes, and conducting their final communion with the gods before the 'Opet Festival' ceremonies," the High Priest explained as he led the group down the cold stone steps. "Now, it serves as the secret reception hall where we humble tomb guardians entertain distinguished guests such as yourselves."
The end of the passage opened into a circular stone chamber that was not particularly spacious but carried a profound sense of historical weight and mystery.
The chamber walls bore no modern gas lamps or carbide lamps. Instead, four ancient alabaster eternal lamps, burning specially prepared oil that emitted a faint sandalwood fragrance, were lit at the four cardinal directions.
The flickering lamplight made the exquisite murals carved into the walls, depicting scenes like "Judgment of the Dead" and "Pharaoh's Coronation," appear almost alive.
A "friendly meeting" involving probing and information exchange officially began within this ancient sanctuary, once accessible only to pharaohs."First, allow me to once again offer my most sincere apologies for my earlier discourtesy and foolish probing, both to you and to the great goddess upon the back of your hand," the High Priest spoke first, breaking the silence.
His face, covered in golden divine tattoos, displayed genuine sincerity. "On this land, caution has long become the sole creed by which we tomb guardians survive."
"After all, over the past several centuries, too many so-called friends, under the banners of exchange and archaeology, have ultimately extended their greedy hands toward the Pharaonic Heritage we have sworn to protect unto death."
"I understand," Lin Jie nodded, choosing not to dwell on this issue further.
Now was not the time to assign blame, but to gather intelligence.
"Then, as an exchange for my apology," the High Priest's gaze sharpened, "I believe I can provide you all with some answers you currently most desire to know."
With that, he demonstrated the Horus Court's terrifying intelligence-gathering capabilities, which would put any nation's official intelligence agency to shame.
From within his wide white linen robe, he produced a small Eye of Horus statue, carved from black iron meteorite and only the size of a palm.
The statue was exquisitely crafted, with its eyeball portion inlaid with obsidian polished to a mirror-like smoothness.
The High Priest placed the statue at the center of the black basalt round table in the middle of the stone chamber.
Then he closed his eyes and placed his right hand, covered in divine tattoos, over the [Obsidian Pupil].
An eerie sound, similar to ultra-low-frequency vibrations, began to emanate from his mouth in the rhythm of chanting ancient scriptures.
"Om— Om— Om—"
An anomaly occurred!
The inanimate black iron meteorite statue was activated by an information flow from the ethereal plane.
Its obsidian-made eyeball rotated once.
Then, a dark golden glimmer began to flicker deep within the [Obsidian Pupil].
Simultaneously, the High Priest's face, covered in golden tattoos, began to tremble. The golden divine tattoos twisted and writhed under the flickering lamplight.
He was using his own body as a receiver, the [Obsidian Pupil] as the decoding terminal, and a psychic method to connect and read the ethereal intelligence network constructed collectively by thousands of Court agents hidden in every corner of Egypt, spanning the entire Nile River basin!
"While you were engaged in that battle with that lowly 'Sand Beast' within that small souvenir shop in Cairo, my people had already monitored all the latest movements of those blasphemers, the Descendants of Apophis," the High Priest's voice became somewhat ethereal, as if countless different people were reporting through his mouth simultaneously.
"After confirming the loss of contact with 'Holy Sand Scarabs' Nephthys, they did not descend into the chaos or panic you might expect due to the plan's failure."
"Quite the opposite."
"They mobilized all the active forces of their entire cult within Egypt with unprecedented intensity!"
"But their target was not to organize personnel to come to Cairo for revenge or rescue."
"They abandoned the [Tear of Apophis], and they abandoned that monster within the Serapeum Temple."
"Because they are searching for another, even more important item."
"A key artifact from the primordial era of our world, the 'Age of Gods' that predates even the First Dynasty!"
At this point, the High Priest suddenly opened his eyes! A deep sense of apprehension flashed within them.
"A sacred relic belonging to that first and greatest Lord of the Underworld, Osiris, who was once dismembered by his evil brother Set and later reassembled and resurrected by his great wife Isis!"
"An artifact said to be able to weigh the heart of the deceased, judge the goodness or evil of their soul, and ultimately determine their eligibility to enter the 'Field of Reeds' for eternal life—the [Scales of the Dead]!!"
This game-changing intelligence left everyone present feeling a chill run down their spines!
"How is this possible?!" Julian exclaimed in disbelief. "Osiris and Apophis! One is the King of the Underworld representing death and rebirth, the other is the Great Serpent of Evil representing chaos and destruction!"
"They are absolute mortal enemies within the mythological system. What could those madmen, the Descendants of Apophis, possibly want with the artifact of their mortal enemy?!"
"Because they are mad," the High Priest's voice grew heavy. "And because they have found the ultimate blasphemous method to drag the world into eternal darkness!"
"Child, your understanding of 'gods' still remains at the level of mortal fairy tales."
The High Priest shook his head, then seized this opportunity to present a truth to these outsiders who, in his view, knew nothing of the true nature of "gods."
"Myths, legends, and those stories of gods written on papyrus and passed down through generations... for us tomb guardians who have truly witnessed that 'Age of Gods'..."
"...they are merely a series of anomalous creature observation reports that have undergone countless beautifications, distortions, and artistic embellishments by later generations."
"The Sky God Horus, the Protective Goddess Nekhbet, the Underworld King Osiris..."
"They were all real entities that once existed on this land, First Generation UMAs possessing independent wills and terrifying power far beyond mortal imagination!"
"And the [Scales of the Dead] and the [Tear of Apophis]."
"They are merely the core remnants left behind by those two powerful UMAs after their deaths or sealings, containing their primordial essence."
The High Priest's final conclusion coincided perfectly with Professor Petrie's theory.
Professor Petrie was right. Myths truly are just echoes of history.
"Only by forcibly merging the chaotic power of the Serpent God and the death power of the Underworld King—these two negative laws belonging to the same negative energy faction yet possessing opposing attributes..." the High Priest, ignoring everyone's astonishment, stated the final conclusion, "...can they truly activate the core law of that [Tear of Apophis] and unleash its maximum power!"
"By then, what they can summon will no longer be merely the reverberation or resentment of that Great Serpent of Evil."
"But a mixed domain capable of transforming the entire Nile River basin into a Death Realm!"
Just as everyone was still digesting this suffocating, terrifying prospect, the High Priest's gaze returned to the back of Lin Jie's right hand.
He shifted the topic, presenting a crucial clue that, for Lin Jie personally, was far more important and urgent than the end of the world.
"Of course, this is not entirely without good news."
"Chosen One, regarding this troublesome 'gift' on your hand, it might also share some faint connection with this Underworld King who is about to reappear in the mortal world."
"In the oldest creation myth system of ancient Egypt, originating from the Heliopolis Temple, the Protective Goddess Nekhbet and the Underworld King Osiris were not simply opposing forces."
"Quite the opposite!"
"They both belonged to the Ennead system initiated by the Sun God Ra!"
"Nekhbet represents the beginning of order—the birth and protection of royal authority!"
"And Osiris represents the end of order—the death and rebirth of life!"
"They are like two sides of the same coin, together forming a complete cycle!"
"So..." a glimmer of wisdom flashed in the High Priest's eyes, "...the best way to appease this overbearing goddess within you, with her intense protective and possessive desires, might be to find her other half for her!"
"Find a sacred relic of the same level as her, representing life, abundance, and rebirth, and originating from Osiris!"
At the end of the meeting, the High Priest retrieved from his wide white linen robe an old map made of papyrus, its edges incomplete and tattered.
He solemnly placed it into Lin Jie's hands.
"The Descendants of Apophis will certainly go here next, to search for that artifact capable of balancing the [Tear of Apophis]—the [Scales of the Dead]."
His finger, covered in golden tattoos, pointed to a location on the map deep within the vast desert in western Egypt, an area known since ancient times as the 'Sea of Death.'"
A temple of unknown origin, buried under yellow sand for thousands of years, marked with unknown symbols and danger indicators.
"Thank you for your candor, High Priest," Lin Jie rose from the stone bench, a look of profound concern appearing on his face.
"Before going to search for that so-called 'sacred relic,' I have one final question."
Lin Jie raised his right hand, displaying the indelible black brand for all to see.
"Regarding its transformation, or rather, its assimilation."
"In the long history of ancient Egypt, someone like me, a 'Chosen One,' shouldn't be the first, right?"
"I want to know..." Lin Jie's voice became hoarse, "...what was the ultimate fate of those who came before me?"
The High Priest gazed at the mark on Lin Jie's hand, falling into a long silence.
Finally, he did not directly answer Lin Jie's question.
He extended his hand, pointing toward the ancient mural on the chamber wall depicting the scene of "Judgment of the Gods."
"Look there."
Everyone instinctively followed the direction of his finger.
On that mural of mottled colors, apart from the familiar Anubis with the jackal head and Thoth with the ibis head...
Behind those deities stood many even more bizarre half-beast, half-human figures!
Some had the heads of lions but human bodies;
others retained human features, but their arms had mutated into the massive jaws of crocodiles.
In conventional archaeological understanding, these would merely be considered artistic exaggerations stemming from the primitive imagination of the ancient Egyptians.
But now, in Lin Jie's eyes, they radiated a hair-raising sense of reality and horror!
"Do you see?"
The High Priest's voice echoed within the stone chamber.
"That, is the answer."
"This is a double-edged sword."
"The symbiotic brand of the Upper Egyptian White Vulture can bring protection to its host. But simultaneously, its territorial consciousness and predator instincts, originating from the top of the food chain, act like a potent poison, constantly eroding the host's humanity and physical form."
"And the predecessors of past generations, in their struggle against this bestial erosion, tried many methods."
"Some," a flash of disdain appeared in the High Priest's eyes, "chose to numb their nerves with extravagant pleasures and bloody slaughter. They naively believed they could use stronger human evil to counter that cold bestial nature."
"But they all ultimately degenerated into tyrants dominated by bestial instincts, knowing only pleasure and slaughter."
"Others," a flash of pity now appeared in the High Priest's eyes, "chose to suppress the desires within their hearts with pious faith and austere asceticism."
"They attempted to use external divinity to purify and assimilate that bestial nature. But they too, without exception, became those half-beast guardians on the wall, having lost all self-will."
"Until," the High Priest's voice paused, "a great pharaoh comprehended the only path to survival from the cyclical flooding and withering of the Nile River."
"It is the method I just told you."
"When these two ecological niche laws of the same faction yet opposing attributes coexist within a single vessel, a 'spiritual ecological cycle,' as perpetual as the Nile's ebb and flow, will be born."
"At that time, you will no longer need to oppose or suppress either side."
"Because they will achieve final harmony in this never-ending cycle of mutual generation and restriction."
"And you, Chosen One, you will become the sole regulator of this internal ecosystem."